Kirschwasser's Story
by KRP
Summary: somewhat AU. follows mainly episode 1 and the Animation. A Kirschwasser tries to hide what she is in a galaxy where Gnosis may not be the only problem
1. Chapter 1 Beginning

**Chapter 1: the Beginning**

_where am I?_

I've been here before…but I don't know where "here" is. I've been here forever...but I've never thought about it…not that I remember anyways.

_who am I?_

I don't…I don't know. I know I should find out, though. After all, if I don't know who I am, who does?

_..what was that??_

Something's moving around me. I sense them. They…they're like me? But…not like me. They're moving. Am I supposed to be moving too?

_what's happening?_

Something's changing. This eternal nothing…this never-changing environment around me…it's disappearing. I can…feel? I think I'm…cold…now. I want the sensations to go away again.

_They are coming._

The things like me. Maybe **they** can help me. Maybe **they** can tell me who I am. Maybe **they**…

--------------------

_Am I really about to do this?_

It had been a long time since her sisters had awakened her on Proto Merkabah. She is one of what Mizrahi referred to as a "Kirschwasser", though there were very few people who know that name. Less, now that his lab, records, notes, and all are lost to the Abyss.

_I guess I left at the right time_, she thought. _I just hope my sisters made it out too…_

She is #0099, part of the 99-Series Observational Realians, created to gather data for the 100-Series Observational Realian Prototype, MOMO. Her 'father's (Dr. Joachim Mizrahi's) replacement daughter for the one he lost. For some reason, after he started #0099's "birth", he decided to simply go with his current data and begin on MOMO. She didn't know why he decided to cancel her birth, and thus, working with incomplete data for the Prototype. Maybe the data he hoped to get from her was insignificant, or he figured out a solution half-way through. Regardless, it was her sisters who, for whatever reason, decided to complete her birth. _For them, I am grateful._

Just recently, Vector Industries had announced the release of the Mass-Production Model 100-Series Observational Realians, and she couldn't be more relieved. The 100-Series hold humanity's main weapon against the Gnosis; the Hilbert Effect, which draws them into Real Space, and takes away their invulnerability.

_Finally, no more hiding because of what I am._

Even better, their models were very similar to her own. Just a different uniform, and while 99-Series had long, silvery-white hair, the 100-Series had hair of medium-short length and a blue-green color, always held up in two by amplifiers for their Hilbert Waves.

_Lucky me, all I need is the uniform, or to get a good picture of what they will look like. _It wasn't that hard to get either; and with the head picture, she could create the best possible disguise. She didn't know whether it was something only she could do, or if her older sisters could too, but ever since she went into hiding across the galaxies, she discovered an ability to copy other Realian's forms as an illusion over her own. Although, her height was something she could never get to change. Even her clothes would change, but it was easier to just wear different ones. No problems there.

…_Okay, one problem. What to do. _

She needed to have something. 100-Series didn't just wander around cities and dock colonies, at least not now. What could she do? It was about that time many things began to happen.

Apart from Vector announcing the new Mass Production 100-Series model, there was supposedly a large weapons facility owned by Vector that exploded on Carioca, and all communications with the planet Ariadne had recently been cut off. Passing civilian vessels had clamed it had been destroyed. Thus, the Galactic Federation was assembling a fleet to investigate this supposed disappearance, and retrieve any salvageable items.

Vector was lending the Federation their new Anti-Gnosis starship, the Woglinde, to investigate the disappearance. It was equipped with state-of-the-art anti-gnosis technology. Only problem? The 100-Series needed to operate them are not yet ready for use. That is how she found herself, disguised as a hurriedly completed 100-Series made for this voyage, running full out to the launch station. She could only hope that she wasn't making a terrible mistake.

(chapter 1: end)

AN: eh, well this is the begining of a somewhat trial story I'm trying to get up. its a sort-of AU version of Xenosaga Episode 1, but i combined details from the game and the Animation, as well as a few things of my own. And, no. this Kirschwasser has nothing to do with Albedo. I know this was short, and i'll try to get the next chapter up soon, but thats still temporary. Its already typed up, but I'm having slight troubles getting everything set up. ttyl

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Xenosaga games or Xenosaga: the Animation.


	2. Chapter 2 Boarding

**Chapter 2: Boarding**

Running full out, the Kirschwasser made her way to the launch hanger of the Dämmerung, where Vector's first Anti-Gnosis star cruiser, the Woglinde, was preparing for launch. It was currently on loan to the Galactic Federation, both to assist in investigating the disappearance of the planet Ariande, and to test the ship itself; even though they don't have any 100-Series to operate most of the equipment (except her, but they don't know that yet). There had also been whispers that Vector was relocating their project to create the ultimate weapon against the gnosis onto the Woglinde. However, the very existence of this project was, in itself, just a rumor. Personally, she wished the rumors to be true. It'd lessen the pressure on her as the one hope if the gnosis attack. But…that's her job. It's why she was so sure they'll believe her unlikely story and take her in. They need whatever help they can get.

_Just one more corridor now. Just one-_

"Attention. Beginning fleet launch. All personnel, please report to your designated area's to prepare for the launch. Once again: Attention. Beginning fleet—"

"No…WAIT!"

They were launching! She haven't even reached the launch bay! Speeding up even more, she flew into the launch bay, ignoring the exclamations of surprise and protest from the workers, and made a beeline for the large ship being taxied into a suitable area to launch. It was still just starting, so she caught up easily. Unfortunately, that's when it started speeding up. She managed to spot what looked like a maintenance hatch. Throwing caution to the wind, she attempted to jump the rapidly increasing gap. It wasn't until she was in the air that she thought about the possibility of missing. See, that's what separated her from the 100-Series. They think through **all **possibilities before taking any course of action.

_Although, I don't think I would have made it if I stopped to think. Actually…I still haven't made it yet._

Reaching out as far as she could, she managed to grab a bar about one meter from the hatch. The rest of her body crashed into the side of the ship with a dull thud, temporarily knocking the wind out of her. The bar turned out to be part of the access ladder to reach the hatch.

_If I could just climb up _….

No good. All the running was catching up to her, and she felt her grip beginning to loosen

as exhaustion took its toll. Then, higher above her, something was happening.

--------------------

(Engine Room)

Jack was one of the engineers currently on duty during the launch prep. Everything was going perfect…that is, until

**thump**

"What was that?" Jack asked to no one in particular.

"It sounded like it came from the Emergency Hatch. Go and take a look. We should make sure that there's nothing wrong with that hatch. I'll make sure you don't fall" said Mike, another engineer, thinking that they may be having electrical problems, or something had jammed or fallen on the hatch. Thus the two found themselves up by the hatch.

"Alright. Let's see if we can still open it first." Mike, being the senior engineer on duty, began to take charge.

Jack nodded and attempted to open the hatch. To his relief, it opened easily.

'_Then what was that noise?' _he thought to himself.

Leaning to look out, he met with an unexpected sight…

--------------------

(Bridge)

'_So far, so good'_ thought the Captain of the Woglinde.

Only things against them were two inevitable facts. First was that they had no 100-Series to man the antignosis weapons and technologies. The second problem was that Vector's analysist who was supposed to operate the equipment for the new weapons fell ill and couldn't join them on the voyage, leaving them with one empty seat on the bridge. All they had to work with was a junior trainee who had no idea what he was doing.

"Captain, we have something going on in engineering."

'_What now?'_ he thought

"What seems to be the problem?" he asked. He hoped it was nothing big. After all, they were preparing for launch. Not much could be fixed at this point.

"Sir, the emergency hatch is open."

"…Contact them or the nearest officer and find out what's happening down there" he ordered. This needed to be taken care of quick, or they would fall far behind schedule.

"Yes, sir."

_What could it be now?_

_-------------------- _

(Engine Room)

Leaning slightly out the hatch, Jack could see a little girl holding onto a ladder rung about a meter below. In another instant, he recognized the girl as a 100-Series Realian.

_How'd that get there??_

"Hey! Make sure I don't fall!" Jack called back to his bewildered superior, as he lifted himself further out the hatch to grab the small Realian. Taking hold of the small arm clutching the ladder bar, Jack and Mike hauled her in.

Immediately after pulling her in and setting her down, she collapsed to her knees gasping for breath. At that time, a soldier entered and began asking the situation and why the hatch was open. While Mike began explaining the sequence of events, Jack began checking if the Realian was ok…but she didn't seem to have caught her breath yet. He just gave her a bottle of water and waited…

(chapter 2: end)

AN: also somewhat short, but these are technically my first attempts at writing an actual story. I can promise that later chapters are not only formated a bit better, but also (hopefully) better written.

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Xenosaga games or Xenosaga: the Animation.


	3. Chapter 3 Woglinde

**Chapter 3: Woglinde**

In the engineering room on the Woglinde, it seemed that things had gradually fallen into chaos.

From what the Kirschwasser could hear from an engineer talking to an officer, they heard a noise and went to check the hatch. Make sure it still worked, or find out what the problem was. Hatch still worked, but they also found her outside it.

The soldier had gotten a call from the bridge stating that an emergency hatch was open in engineering at requesting that he go check out the situation. For her own part, the little Realian was amazed at the commotion banging one's body into a ship this side could make.

Then conversation turned to more pressing matters: how this 100-Series, or what they assumed to be one because of the illusion that changed her hair color (she was wearing a stolen uniform) had gotten to the ship, or even existed for the matter; and also what to do with her now that she was here. They first decided to have the soldier bring her up to the bridge to the captain so that the engineers could get on with their launch prep.

The Realian couldn't help but notice that no one asked her any of this directly. In fact, they as good as ignored her presence on the floor. Herself just calming her breathing down to normal, she soon found herself being 'led' (dragged) down numerous corridors as they made their way to the bridge.

'_This is going ok, I think….'_

_-------------------- _

(Bridge)

The captain waited and was growing worried.

'_Why has there not been a report yet?' _he thought worriedly._ 'Is it that bad or just very complicated?'_

At that moment, the elevator began rising.

'_Who…? Is he coming up to report?' _the bewildered captain moved back to where the elevator was coming to meet an unexpected sight.

The soldier was indeed the one on the elevator, but he wasn't alone. There appeared to be a little girl with him, sporting blue-green hair and a familiar uniform…no. could it be?

"Well, now. What's all of this? And who are you?" he asked the two of them, slightly impatient to get this launch underway.

The soldier led the girl, no Realian, forward off the elevator and began to explain; "The engineers heard a noise on the side of the ship, and opened the hatch to investigate. They found her."

"Alright" said the captain. Turning to the Realian, he continued; "Now, who are you and how did you get onto the side of this ship?"

Taking a step forward, the Realian hurriedly answered; "Sir, I am a 100-Series Observational Realian completed and assigned to the Woglinde. I apologize for being late, sir, but when I arrived the ship was leaving. I hurried to catch up, and only managed to grab the rungs to the emergency hatch. The impact of my body on the ship must have been the noise that alerted the engineers to my presence. Again, I apologize for any inconvenience or troubles I have caused."

"No, no. No trouble at all. I had thought that you were a 100-Series Realian, so I guess what I really meant to ask was how do you, a 100-Series, exist when Vector informed us that you would not be ready in time for the voyage?" replied the captain.

"Oh…" she looked down for a minute at this. "It depends on your definition of 'ready'…"

"What do you mean? You're up and functional, aren't you?" The captain was having a rough day, and this confusion was not helping anything. _'So much for a routine launch'_ he thought halfheartedly.

"Yes, but I am not technically 'finished'. My production was rushed to be used for this voyage." Came her reply.

"Ah, I see. So what can you still do?"

"Well, anything the 'completed' models can do, just slower and less efficient than they could."

"Really. Hmm..?" a thought suddenly struck him. "Would you be able to operate that terminal there?"

"Huh? Oh, uh…which one?" she was slightly confused at this abrupt change in pace. _'What does he want me to do?'_ She thought. _'If it's anything too complicated…..'_

The captain took her by the shoulder, with a nod to dismiss the still waiting soldier. He led her down to the empty terminal in the back left-hand corner right below the captain's terminal.

"This terminal…" he began.

"…it is used to operate various new weaponry to repel gnosis attacks, as well as function as a secondary navigation panel." The Realian interrupted. "This terminal has been modified specifically for monitoring and transmitting of Hilbert Waves. Yes, this would be easy for me to operate…but why is no one else already using it? Is it just for me?"

"No. The one who was supposed to operate it fell ill and could not make it. Actually, we didn't know you were coming at all. Is there any reason Vector has not told us that they were creating a rushed 100-Series to come aboard?" questioned the captain.

The Realian turned to him with a slightly confused expression; "I was not aware that you didn't know. I was simply told I was to go to the launch bay and assist the Woglinde."

The captain thought this over; "Strange…but no matter. You coming aboard actually fixes two problems at once: we now have better protection against the Gnosis, and have a competent operator for the bridge. We'll be beginning launch shortly, so I'll need you here for that. Afterwards, you may rest in the Realian infirmary for a time. From the sounds of things, you've had quite a busy day."

"Yes sir. Thank you, sir." She turned and took her place at her new station while the captain continued;

"Alright! Now, are we ready for launch?" he asked another bridge worker.

"Affirmative, sir. All systems go. Most of the fleet is beginning to launch as well."

"Very good. Start the main engines, and let's get this show on the road."

(chapter 3: end)

AN: bit longer, but still getting there. From now on, there won't be any POV changes, the story will just be told from the Kirschwasser's perspective. no, she doesn't have a name yet. That happens later, when she's actually asked for one.

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Xenosaga games or Xenosaga: the Animation.


	4. Chapter 4 Voyage

**Chapter 4: Voyage**

After the 'incident' during the prep for launch, the rest of the fleet deployment went rather smoothly. Like promised, the Kirschwasser was allowed time to rest. While sleep would be very welcome after the day's events, there was one problem: she had no quarters to sleep in.

_Well, I could always use an infirmary bed, but I'm nervous about their monitoring me. _She thought. _That might reveal what I am._

The little Realian had no shortage of problems recently. Aside from her way of boarding the ship, it turns out that her version of the Hilbert Effect was about half that of the Mass Production models. This meant that if she was going to be of use against the Gnosis, she'd need to find some way to amplify their effect, maybe with secondary amplification, before them being transmitted to the Woglinde's Hilbert Amplifier.

_Well, I _could_ try to increase the onboard Amplifier's sensitivity, but I'd probably be caught. Plus, I have no idea how I'd do it._

And then, there was an immediate problem…

_Where am I?_ She thought helplessly.

She had been wandering the Woglinde's many corridors for the past fifteen minutes and gotten herself lost. Eventually, she found a map display on the wall and began studying it, trying to commit as much of it to memory as possible while attempting to locate the bridge, Realian infirmary, and other points if interest...including wherever she was now.

"Hello. Are you alright? Are you lost?" Someone asked from behind her. The Realian turned to face the speaker, a young woman in a strange uniform, behind her.

"Oh, uh, well, no…kind of. Well, not really.." she had gotten all flustered and barely remembered what the question was she was answering.

"Huh. Hey, aren't you a 100-Series Observational Realian?" the woman inquired.

"Uh-huh" came the nodded reply. _'Where have I seen that uniform before?...'_

"That's strange. I thought they weren't in production yet…" the woman continued, sounding somewhat confused. At this, the Realian blinked in realization and paled visibly. _'Uh-oh. Vector.' _

The woman continued on ignorant to her companion's unease. "They were kind of busy in Third Division last I heard. You must have been made specially for this voyage, right?...Hey, you ok?"

"Y-yes. I'm just tired. And, yes. My production was rushed to be ready for this trip." She responded, hoping almost beyond hope the woman would believe her and let her be.

"Oh, sorry for bothering you. You know, if you're tired you should get some rest. I just sort-of thought it was strange for a Realian to be reading maps of their assigned workspace."

"Well, I just got here seven minutes ago, so I don't really know where I'm going yet." The Realian admitted. This seemed to confuse the woman even more;

"But…didn't the final boarding call go out fifteen minutes ago? And didn't they board the Realians near the beginning?" She questioned.

'_Oops…now I've done it. Might as well tell the whole story…' _she thought. "Well, I kind of was running late, and I got to the launch bay ten minutes ago."

"Oh, so they had to delay a few minutes to let you on? They didn't announce that…"

"uh, actually…they **didn't **delay anything…" She began to not like this woman's inquisitive personality, even if she did admire her friendliness.

"So, how..?" the woman began but trailed of, leaving the nervous Realian to continue.

"Well, I took a running start and jumped for the emergency hatch." She admitted, much to the Vector employee's shock.

"You made it to the emergency hatch? Oh, the one in Engineering, right? That's the farthest back." Said the woman with a thoughtful expression.

"Yes, well, I made it to the ladder rung. My body crashed into the side of the ship." She winced slightly at the memory, which the woman took in slightly the wrong way.

"Oh, my. Are you alright?" she asked worriedly.

"Yes. I'm more fatigued from running all the way to the launch bay."

"No wonder you'd be tired!" the woman still was talking too "Why don't you go rest?"

"Well, I didn't want to sleep in the Infirmary, but I guess I have nowhere else, huh?"

"They didn't assign you a room?"

"I don't think they knew I was coming. It's all very strange."

Their conversation went on a while longer, until the Realian couldn't hold in a large yawn. At that point, the still unknown woman led her to the infirmary, saying that she was heading over there anyways. The Kirschwasser was asleep as soon as her head hit the bed, all worries about the monitor temporarily forgotten.

--------------------

(one year into voyage)

As time went by on the Woglinde, the Realian seemed to be accepted further, and also fit in better, becoming less nervous about who she was, and playing her part more convincingly. At one point, she was able to take some tools from Vector's R&D department on board and fit a small Hilbert amplification crystal into a necklace. She now had an output equal to, if not greater than, the Mass Production models that she was impersonating. Also, this crystal allowed her to link up with the main amplifier on board the Woglinde from any of the many terminals located throughout the ship.

At present, she was on 'break', if you could call it that. She had a shorter break than the human bridge workers, mainly because she was a Realian and could do more on less. Her breaks weren't even long enough to take a nap. The most she could do was take an energy drink or a snack from their vending machines and sit or walk in the general vicinity. At first, she was angry at the un-fairness of her treatment, but it was better than some of the other Realians, who only got breaks when they were overworked and collapsed or when an abnormality came up in their systems, requiring maintenance in the Infirmary.

However, every so often, the captain would allow her a longer break. At first, she was grateful for these. But, as time went on, she began running out of things to do during these times. Currently, she was on one of these 'extended breaks', and was simply wandering the ship. She was just passing through a domestic works corridor, wondering what to do, when a voice called to her from inside one of the rooms.

"Uh, excuse me, miss. Are you free at the moment? I was wondering if you could help me out for a minute…" the voice belonged to the worker from inside the laundry room. Curious and with nothing better to do, she decided to see how she could help.

"Yes, I'm free. What do you need?" she asked after poking her head into the room. It was a relative mess.

"I had to work a late shift last night, overslept, and had to rush to get to my post this morning. My break's not until another few hours, but I didn't have time to grab a bite to eat this morning. I was wondering, would you mind putting the clothes into the washing machines and hit the start button. I'd appreciate it, and it'd only be for a few minutes. Anything I could do for you in return, I'd make it up to you. Could you help me out?" he asked, sounding quite desperate.

"When would you be back by?" she could always do with someone owing her a favor.

"It wouldn't be five minutes and I'd be back."

'_Plenty of time to do this and get back to the bridge'_ she thought before continuing out loud. "Alright. I'll help."

"Really? Thank you a lot! Alright, just load the clothes from the hampers into the machines. Once you start it, the machine will do the rest. Be right back." And he was gone.

'_Well, easy enough'_ she thought, and with that began to unload the clothes from the many baskets underneath the many chutes and put them into the wash machines. However, in one pile, something fell out of a soldier's uniform and clattered to the floor. After putting that bundle into the machine, she turned to see what she dropped.

"Hmm…uh? Oh, this is….." she didn't really know what to do with it. One of the soldiers, probably in the higher ranks, had actually left his gun with his uniform. The weapon was designed to shoot energy 'bullets' at the target, originally built with the thought that the new type of ammunition would be able to catch Gnosis in Imaginary Space. It failed in its intended purpose, but it proved cheaper for small handguns such as that to be built and run on pure energy.

"Well…better to be safe than sorry, I guess." She said, slipping the object out of sight. A few minutes later, the worker came back.

"Sorry it took so long; had to take the long way back. Any problems?"

"No, sir. Everything's fine here." She replied, not mentioning the weapon she found in the clothes pile. She'd be keeping that herself.

"Ok, good. Thank you again. Anything I can do to help you?" he asked.

"Oh, no sir. I'm fine" she said while thinking; _'you've already done enough for me…'_

(chapter 4: end)

AN: hello again to whoever's reading this. this chapter should be a bit more the length I'm looking for, if a bit on the short side. Its longer than the others so far. Not too happy with how the long conversation in the beginning turned out, but I tried to fix it up a bit. I think most of you should be able to guess who the Vector Researcher is/was. Dunno exactly when I plan to update again (I actually didn't plan this one for another day or later), but next chapter starts the two-part Gnosis attack. For anyone who doesn't think the timeline is quite right, I tried to base it off one i got on a poster that came with something for the third game. It wasn't too detailed, but this should be about right. ttyl

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Xenosaga games or Xenosaga: the Animation.


	5. Chapter 5 Gnosis

**Chapter 5: Gnosis**

They had been traveling in space for about two years now, and the Kirschwasser found this day to be the same as any other, except for one thing;

_Something doesn't feel right…_ she thought to herself. According to their flight course, they should be reaching Ariadne space today. It could just be what was awaiting them there, but she would feel safer with some form of protection.

After taking her amplifier/necklace, she reached into the drawer, moved aside a few trivial possessions, and took the item hidden in there. The same item she had acquired from that day helping the laundry worker. Hiding it on herself, she made her way to the bridge to work her shift. The fleet would be exiting the hyperspace column soon.

Arriving on the bridge, she took her seat with a nod to the captain as she passed.

"Entering Ariadne sector. Initiating Gate-Out sequence." Called one of her colleagues.

_Good. Right on time_ thought the Realian.

They exited the column, and were met with empty space. At first, everyone was a little confused. They had heard all contact with Ariadne was lost, but there was nothing here.

The captain, unable to accept the inevitable so easily, called out "Are you sure we're in the right sector?"

The Realian began checking and double checking their coordinates.

"Yes, sir. This is the location of the planet Ariadne." She called out.

"But there's nothing here!" exclaimed another member in disbelief, while the Kirschwasser began running scans of the area; both to check for signs of radiation or other causes to the planets disappearance, and also to check for any retrievable artifacts. That _was_ the purpose of this expedition, after all.

"_PING!"__found something. _"Sir, there is _something _out there, but…I'm not sure what."

"Transfer the coordinates. Retrieval takes top priority."

"Yes, sir. Transferring coordinates."

The next few hours consisted of the retrieval of a large, irregularly shaped object and initiating a column jump to the next space sector. The Realian was finishing up her duties, because she was scheduled to go on 'break' (short one this time) in a few minutes. While she typed, she overheard the captain telling another crewmember to 'contact Chief Uzuki' about some data. Apparently, this Vector Chief was in charge of a project located in a separate district on the Woglinde. They mostly kept to themselves, and the Realian had never been present for one of these reports before. _Well, can't hurt to see this 'Chief Uzuki', can it?_

After a few minutes (and three after the scheduled arrival time), the elevator activated. The Kirschwasser took notice, and began closing her monitor for the time being. Behind her she could hear talking, and then the elevator activating again, while the Commander's voice was added to the group. In one of the quiet moments, presumably while the commander reviewed the report, she felt a pair of eyes studying her. Turning, she caught sight of the First Division Chief.

_She looks familiar…_thought the Realian. Of course, she hadn't expected a female to be the chief, but it was being stereotypical to think that because she was a woman meant she couldn't be Chief.

At that moment, the commander drew her attention back to him with an abrupt shout. Something about a sleepy weapon? _Alright, better not to ask._

She then got up and passed by the arguing match taking place near the elevator and began to descend. As she was lowering, she took one last look at the assembled group. _I know I've seen that woman somewhere before…_ and then she was out of sight. It didn't occur to her until she was walking to the Realian infirmary that that woman was the same Vector employee who she talked to on her first day on board the Woglinde. _Wow…small world._ She thought to herself.

She made her way to a secluded bed in the infirmary, and sat down to think. That feeling she had that morning had only worsened throughout her shift, and she couldn't understand why. Across the room, the Third Division representative was having troubles with the combat Realians, and decided to call for some help. _Who's he going to call? He's the highest there is to care for these Realians!_ She couldn't help but think.

A few minutes later, the doors opened signaling the poor man's 'help' had arrived.

"You rang?"

"My apologies, Chief Uzuki. It seems we are constantly in need of your assistance."

_He always talks so formal.._. She had had suspicions of him being part Realian himself, the way he talked. _…wait a minute. Did he say 'Chief Uzuki'?!_

She looked over to confirm it. Sure enough, that same woman was there, talking to the head of Realian Maintenance. _Very small world._ She thought with a small smile. After a few more seconds of watching, her thoughts drifted back to her own problems. Thus, she took no notice when said chief approached her in the far corner.

"Hello again. It looks like something's bothering you."

"Huh?" she looked up at the woman before her, then glanced quickly at the monitor next to her. _Off_.

"No, its not the monitor. It's written on you're face." The woman said with a smile.

"Oh, uh…huh?" was all she said, catching sight of a keychain hanging down from the inside of the woman's vest.

Following her gaze, the woman took out her UMN phone, "Ah, you like Bunnie?" she asked with a smile.

The Realian nodded. The bunny looked calming, and somehow seemed soothing. The woman took the keychain off her phone, and placed it in her hand.

"Here. You can keep it."

"But.." she tried to protest, but the woman cut her off.

"It's ok. I still have this." She said holding up the UMN phone.

"Thank you, Miss Uzuki" was the little Realian's only reply.

"Oh, just call me Shion. We can be friends, right?" Shion asked.

"Alright" she replied with a smile. This was the first time anyone had ever done anything really nice for her.

It was at that time that sirens began going off. After a few moments of confusion, an announcement came on, confirming the Kirschwasser's worst fears. The Gnosis were attacking.

Panicking slightly, she jumped off the Infirmary bed and ran out of the room. To her surprise, Shion had followed her, and now the two were racing down the corridor. Realizing that it was too late to make it to the bridge in time before massive damage was done to the ship, she took a left at the next fork in the path, as opposed to a right to get to the bridge.

"Wait, where are you going?" Shion called after her.

She just kept running. Just one more corridor, and she would be at one of the terminals to transmit Hilbert Waves to the Bridge's Amplifier. Rounding the corner, she saw to her horror, that Gnosis had begun materializing inside the ship. Rushing to the console, she placed her necklace in a slot and activated the Hilbert Effect.

It was then that Shion caught up, and also when some more Gnosis tried to materialize in that hallway. The result; an explosion knocking back both the Realian and Shion, as well as opening the hallway to the outside space. While the shields prevented them from being fully sucked out, they were partially damaged, and were not functioning properly. On top of that, there were some Gnosis who were unharmed by the blast, and began advancing on the two.

Barely hesitating, the Realian shuffled over to check on Shion. She was unconscious, but alive. It was then that she noticed the Gnosis, who has begun advancing. She stood frozen for a moment, then remembered the item she had brought this morning in case of emergency. She reached behind herself and brought out a standard Federation energy pistol she had picked up from the soldier's clothes so long ago, and opened fire at the Gnosis.

Of course, she was no Combat Realian, and thus her accuracy was quite poor. On the other hand, she had sensors and scanners to help with targeting, so she faired better than a normal human would. Although she was holding them back, it was only a matter of time before they overwhelmed her. She also was un-able to fire at the Gnosis while getting Shion to safety. All she could do was shoot and hope.

Soon, the shots drew the attention of a Combat Realian on his way to join up with his squad. Hearing the pistol shots, he came down the corridor and together they managed to wipe out the remaining Gnosis (although, it was mainly the Combat Realian who had greater accuracy and a better gun as well).

"Thank you" the Kirschwasser said to the combat Realian who had saved them.

"It was nothing. However, we should proceed to a safer position to insure her survival" he replied, motioning to Shion still lying on the ground.

All of a sudden, an explosion was heard far away, yet the whole ship began to shake.

A quick scan of the ship revealed troubling news.

"No…the Bridge…its…its been….." she couldn't complete her sentence. It was then that one of the Gnosis stood up to give one final attack. The Combat Realian spotted it, and opened fire…but not before the Gnosis destroyed it's target. Not the creatures in front of it, but the console next to it still emitting Hilbert Waves, destroying the crystal in the process. There went their last weapon….

The Combat Realian helped Shion up, as she had just begun to come to, and began leading them to where the remaining soldiers were making their last stand.

Rounding another corner, they were met head on by a group of Gnosis. Scattered around were bodies of Realians and desecrated A.G.W.S. units. The Combat Realian told the two of them to run, and began to confront the Gnosis. He managed to get two when they phased into Real Space for a mere instant, but a third slaughtered him mercilessly afterwards, leaving three Gnosis to Shion and the Kirschwasser.

"Quick! Can you activate the Hilbert Effect?" Shion asked.

"I can, but it's area of effect won't be enough to affect them. I don't have the strength to.." she was cut off as a Gnosis battered her aside, flinging her down the hall, before turning to pick up Shion.

"No! Shion!" the small Realian began firing and firing at the Gnosis, but it was still in Imaginary Space. "NO!"

Then, an explosion on the side of the corridor, and a blaster shot was fired, hitting the Gnosis' arm the instant it phased into Real Space.

When the Kirschwasser opened her eyes and saw Shion on the ground, she managed to crawl over to her to check if she was alright. She was coughing a lot, but was still alive. Then, she looked up to see their savior.

(chapter 5: end)

AN: Sorry to cut it off right there, but thats where I decided to end this segment. To any of you who've actually continued reading to this far (I know that's not very many...) could you at least let me know if this has gotten any better, well, at all? Don't have to...but I'd appreciate it. ttyl

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Xenosaga games or Xenosaga: the Animation.


	6. Chapter 6 Attack

**Chapter 6: Attack**

Walking out in front of them was what appeared to be a girl in her late teens with long blue hair and red eyes that emitted a slight glow.

Shion also looked up and gasped; "K- KOS-MOS!"

"Chief!" a young man also in a Vector uniform came running out to them from the new hole in the wall, and began helping Shion to stand.

"Allen? What's…?" Shion began asking the newcomer, presumably Allen, while the other girl, KOS-MOS, began to confront the Gnosis.

At first, the Realian thought the girl was suicidal, but she seemed to hold her own, even managing to destroy two of the five Gnosis still in the corridor with flurries of punches and shots from a handgun. Her speed and agility were much too high, even for a Realian built for the purpose. _Just who is she_, thought the Kirschwasser.

"KOS-MOS just activated and said something about you in trouble and the Gnosis, so I followed her here" Allen began, trying to explain to Shion some of what was happening. The Realian figured that he worked really close to Shion, mainly because she trusted him, and he seemed to know her so well.

Meanwhile, KOS-MOS had begun to have trouble. The Gnosis got over their surprise and were beginning to overwhelm her. The Kirschwasser wanted to provide some kind of cover-fire, but didn't trust her own accuracy. That, and KOS-MOS moved around so much she'd probably hit her instead of the Gnosis.

KOS-MOS also noticed this change in events, and began to back off, sliding a visor over her face. The Realian knew the instant the energy began charging what was happening. Apparently, Shion knew as well.

"What? The Hilbert Effect??" she exclaimed.

It was. Sure enough, seconds later, all Gnosis were dragged out of limbo, and lost all immunity to KOS-MOS' attacks. The Realian was amazed, to say the least. The area of effect was greater than her own with both the ship's amplifier, and her now-broken crystal together. Then, it finally clicked; THIS was Vector's ultimate weapon against the Gnosis. It did exist, and Shion was the Chief engineer who was making it. The Realian couldn't be more relieved. Everything would be alright now. However, a glance at Shion brought all the worry rushing back.

"Shion?" she asked tentively, touching the sleeve of her vest to get her attention. Shion was still in a stupor, but Allen did finally notice her.

"Hey, wait a minute! Who are you?" he asked, but she took no notice, more worried about Shion.

Shion had begun to come out of it, seeing as how she was starting to think. But, apparently, her thoughts were simply confusing her more.

"But…how? I never put in the activation codes. How is she here?" Shion asked, seemingly to herself.

"Well, she started up in Auto-Mode." Allen told her, seeming to forget about the Realian also present. His explanation, however, didn't help.

"But…we disabled that! We disabled it after the incident two years ago!" Shion insisted, showing for the first time she had been listening.

'_Incident? What incident?' _The Realian had never been to Vector, and had definitely not heard anything bad about the weapon's tests….but she didn't want to be in the presence of an un-stable being with the power to rip you in half. Allen's only reply to his boss was a shrug.

Meanwhile, with the Hilbert Effect active, KOS-MOS began making quick work of the remaining Gnosis. At some points, her arms transformed into weapons which she either shot or slashed at the enemy with. She was finished in no time, and was now approaching the group she had been protecting. Her eyes briefly locked onto the Realian, as well as the weapon she had put away, before dismissing her as insignificant.

"Shion." KOS-MOS finally began to speak in an oddly monotone voice.

"Y-yes?"

"This ship is being capsized. We will proceed to the life pods located in the nearby hangar. Please use one to escape." She said, motioning down the hallway.

"Don't have to tell me twice," muttered the Realian, and began to tug on Shion's sleeve in the direction of the hangar. The sooner they left, the sooner she could actually stop and try to understand everything.

"Wait, but—KOS-MOS!" Shion wasn't quite ready to accept things just like that, and turned to question the android. Said android didn't seem too willing to wait.

"Shion, I am also charged with the protection of the object located in that hangar. There is a 99 percent probability that the Gnosis' target is the object stored in that hangar."

"Wait, who charged you with its protection? What's going on with you KOS-MOS?" Shion was starting to get frustrated.

"What object?" the Kirschwasser had still listened, regardless of her subtle effort to get Shion to start walking. "The one we picked up earlier? Why? What did it look like?" a sudden thought had just occurred to her.

"We must leave immediately," KOS-MOS interrupted, taking Shion's arm, and began leading them down the corridor.

'_So much for subtle'_ thought the Realian before she was running to keep up. While they walked, Shion tried to answer her questions;

"Yes, that's the only object of interest stored there. After picking it up, they decided to store it in the hangar right next to our labs. It looks like a large, golden cross-shaped plate with a red symbol on it."

"Red symbol? Hmm…" _an emulator…_she had only caught a brief look at them before leaving Proto Merkabah, but those energy wave patterns had been practically burned into her memory.

"Yes. Do you know it?" asked Shion, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"Huh? Oh, no. Doesn't sound familiar" she hated lying to Shion, but what exactly could she tell her?

They entered the hangar, just in time to see a group of Gnosis begin to pull the emulator through the ceiling. While KOS-MOS immediately began to confront the Gnosis, the two humans and Realian made for the only escape pod left. It had room for only two, but Shion wasn't about to let her new friend stay behind, and pulled the Realian in regardless. The last sounds they heard before the escape pod sealed, was the sound of rail guns firing and Gnosis being destroyed.

They all sat in absolute silence for a time. Then, Allen began to call for assistance with the ship's weak emergency system. To all their surprise, a ship actually responded, claiming a "crazy, blue haired girl" had demanded they pick them up, before departing for their next destination. Soon, they all found themselves on board the tramp freighter Elsa.

--------------------

(Elsa Bridge)

"I apologize for all the trouble we and our friend KOS-MOS have caused." Shion was quick to apologize to the crew. After all, they had dropped in unexpected.

"Don't mention it. I'm Captain Matthews" called the large man standing near us. "Up there's our pilot, Tony" he waved "and our navigator, Hammer." He bowed his head in a nod towards them

Then, a voice behind them called out "Hey, captain! What's all this?" behind them, a boy entered the bridge. He was of medium build, and had silver hair.

"Oh, and this is chaos. He's kind of a 'jack-of-all-trades'. Anything we can't get done, he can" said Matthews.

"Yeah, pretty much" chaos agreed with a shrug "now, who are all of you?"

Thus, Shion began the introductions; "Oh, sorry. My name is Shion Uzuki, and I'm from Vector Industries, First R&D Division; and this is my co-worker, Allen. Also from the same Division. This is KOS-MOS, part of why we're here, and this is…I'm sorry, but you never did tell me you're name" indicating all of them, finishing with the Realian.

"Huh? Me?" she had never been called anything but 'Realian', '100-Series', or 'Kirschwasser' (only by Mizrahi) "I'm just a 100-Series Realian…and not a complete one at that."

"But…don't you have a name? Something only you go by, not just a title or model?" Shion asked worriedly. Her only reply was a shake of her head. "Well, is there anything you'd _like_ to be called?"

'_What do… I want? I don't know…I liked Kirschwasser the best, but that gives me away to anyone who knows enough about MOMO's creation' _she thought, trying to come up with a name. _'…I could shorten it_. _There's Kirsch…but that's still a bit obvious. Kish?_

"Could I be called Kish?" she asked, unsure if it was a good name.

"Kish? Alright." Shion seemed to think it was fine; she tried to finish the introductions "and this is Kish. Nice to meet you all as well." As she finished, KOS-MOS stepped forward.

"If I may interrupt?" she spoke to the Captain, ignoring everyone else, including the introductions.

"KOS-MOS?.." Shion was looking at her with a strange expression.

"I wish to request a co-generator bypass to recharge." She began, "My energy reserves are running low."

"Hey, KOS-MOS…" Shion began again, but was still being ignored.

"Sure, I don't mind. You'll cover the bill, right?" Matthews seemed confused at the women's antics.

"Affirmative" was the only reply before she turned and began to walk away.

"KOS-MO--" Shion tried again, but…

"Shion". This time, KOS-MOS took notice…or so it seemed.

"Y-yes?" Shion replied, slightly taken aback.

"My sensors seem to be malfunctioning. It would be best if you were to repair them before we arrive at our destination." She was still ignoring Shion's attempt to talk to her, which frustrated her.

"Why should I?" Shion asked.

'Please, Shion. It is your job, is it not?" With that, KOS-MOS was gone.

"I really don't understand that girl sometimes," she muttered mostly to herself. "I'm terribly sorry for all the trouble we're causing."

"Oh, no problems, at all" the one called chaos replied. "It's all the more lively with more crew members."

"Yeah, no problems…but" at this, Matthews stepped forward and put a hand on Shion and Kish's shoulders, "If you two do something for us, I'd be somewhat willing to lower your fare." He said, with the bare hint of a smile.

"Huh? Uh…" the two looked at each other, not quite sure what to say.

At that time, the Elsa entered Hyperspace, and began a long, yet significant journey.

(chapter 6: end)

AN: Not the best ever, but now that there's actually the game/show to follow, this becomes easier to write. It also ends up easier now that I can refer to Kish by some name. Kirschwasser...'cherry brandy'. Why anyone would name a Realian that is beyond me; let alone a series of them. I do realize that it was probably Albedo that gave them that name, but for purposes of the story, I'll say that Mizrahi called them that, and Albedo found the record somewhere on the Song of Nephilim. Well, that's all. 'Till later.

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Xenosaga games or Xenosaga: the Animation.


	7. Chapter 7 Elsa

**Chapter 7: Elsa**

Kish was walking through the Elsa, lost in thought.

_How am I going to do this? I hope Shion has some idea what to do, because I won't be much help_ she thought, slightly depressed. _Well, here goes nothing._ And with that, she stepped forward and entered the room.

Once the door opened, the many smells of cooking foods assaulted her. And there was Shion, standing in the middle, already beginning preparations for the meal.

"Umm…Shion?"

"Ah, Kish. Good timing. Here, come help me with this" Shion seemed to be taking charge already, and Kish was perfectly happy just to do as told. After all, she had very little cooking experience. She had worked as an assistant in a bakery a while back, but that dealt with breads and pastries; not likely to be any help now.

After a while of cooking food, Kish got the impression that Shion definitely was not new to this. So she decided to ask;

"Hey, Shion. You're a pretty good cook, aren't you?"

"Well, how good I am is more a matter of opinion, but I used to work in a café a long time ago, and was able to pick up a few things" Shion replied.

To say the Realian was impressed may have been an understatement. "So, you're a cook, a researcher in one of the largest organizations in the galaxy, the developer of humanity's ultimate weapon against the Gnosis, and you do Realian Psych support." She began to list off. "Anything else? Or rather, what aren't you good at?" she asked with a half teasing, half exasperated tone.

"Oh, I think you're exaggerating quite a bit. I'm not great at anything; just know how to do a bit of many subjects." Shion was always the humble one, Kish decided after that answer.

"So, you're kind of like chaos; a 'jack of all trades, master of none'? Actually, I don't know if there is anything chaos is especially good at, since I don't really know him…" she trailed off, speaking more to herself than to anyone in particular. As she finished talking, the door slid open.

"I think I'm best in protecting the ship and crew, although I hardly get the chance to." chaos stated, embarrassing Kish in the process. She had just been talking about him behind his back, and he had heard it.

"Oh, hello chaos. Need anything?" asked Shion, ever polite, and slightly amused at Kish's predicament.

"No, no. Just making sure everything's alright in hea-" he was cut off as the Elsa shook from a stray laser blast. Kish and Shion began scrambling to make sure none of the food fell, then Kish told Shion to go ahead while she secured everything in place.

"You sure? Alright. Just make sure you hurry back to the bridge once you're done" and they took off. A few moments, and many near accidents later, Kish headed to the bridge as well; only to run into Shion, chaos, and KOS-MOS heading to the elevator to the lower levels.

"What's happening?" she asked them as soon as she caught up. There had been a lot more hits while she was putting food away, causing many of the near accidents.

It was chaos who answered; "A small ship was under attack. We got caught in the crossfire, and the Captain relented. Shion managed to catch the small ship with the claw, and brought them aboard."

At that, Kish looked at Shion expectantly and stated; "Another 'trade', eh?" Shion only smiled.

"Either way," chaos continued with a hint of amusement "the occupants of that ship are down there now."

A quick scan of the lower levels brought some confusion and worry. "Exactly how big was this ship? Cause there must be more than 20 units down there."

"The pursuing craft were Auto-Techs" he said simply. "Can you help somehow? With Hilbert, maybe?" His question was met with discomfort in the small Realian.

"Well," she began, "It'd probably work, quite well in fact….but my area of effect, it's too small." This time, it was KOS-MOS who spoke up; "Then it would be best if you stayed on the bridge. Were you to accompany us, you would only get in the way."

This just got her mad. "Hmph. Just because I can't use the Hilbert Effect, doesn't mean I can't help" she all but yelled, and took out the pistol she picked up on the Woglinde. "I'm not too bad a shot." In truth, she wasn't too confident in her accuracy, but there was no way she was gonna be called useless; the 100-Series had already bestowed that title onto her and her 98 sisters. If they were still alive.

"Good. Well, lets get on with this" chaos said; dispersing the tension while moving into the elevator.

--------------------

"Two semi-biological units approaching from the right hand corridor." Reported Kish as the group made their way down to meet the occupants of that ship and to eliminate the Auto-Tech units. The fact that these two signals were not fully mechanical, meant that they could quite possibly be the ones they were looking for.

Something had been bothering Kish. Ever since the first laser impact, she had a strange feeling. Something was there that shouldn't be, or that she didn't agree with. It only got worse as they pressed on. On top of that, she still had no idea what it was.

"Alright. Let's meet our visitors" said Shion, and the group waited at the intersection for them. While standing there, Kish picked up some strange signals ahead, and her curiosity was piqued. Beginning to investigate, she glanced back to catch a look at their guests.

Rounding the corner at that precise moment, they all caught sight of an unlikely duo. The first and larger of the two had mechanical parts, marking him as a cyborg. The other one made Kish freeze. She now understood what had been sending wavelengths that made her upset. It was a 100-Series, but with a different uniform…and pink hair. It was MOMO; the prototype, and the reason she was almost never born at all.

(chapter 7: end)

AN: well...that was kinda short. uh, sorry 'bout that. Normally, I'd give ya another too, but I still have to rework Chapter 9. Decided to completely change and re-write it, and I haven't gotten far. Of course, I haven't really been focusing on this recently so...anyway ttyl

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Xenosaga games or Xenosaga: the Animation.


	8. Chapter 8 MOMO

**Chapter 8: MOMO**

Being the type of person she is, Shion struck up a conversation with the newcomers, despite the current situation.

"Hello" she began; "you're the ones who were on that ship, right? Are you both ok?"

"Yes, and we're fine" said the cyborg. "I am Ziggura-" he began, but stopped to glance at the Realian behind him who had started fidgeting during the introduction. "Call me Ziggy. And this is MOMO" he finished. "Hello, I'm MOMO" the Realian introduced, slightly unnecessarily.

Ziggy, the cyborg, continued; "And, you would be the owner of this vessel?"

"Hmm? Oh, no. We're passengers too. Well, all except chaos there." Shion added as an after thought, then continued. "I'm Shion Uzuki. And there's KOS-MOS, chaos, and Kish is…where'd she go?" chaos pointed down the other hallway, and a few second later, a voice yelled down; "Shion! There's a large Auto-Tech unit in the rear hangar, and its short-jumping more units onboard!"

Kish had examined both the cyborg and her 'sister' before continuing ahead. She had decided to investigate the other strange energy waves, and more Auto-Techs began to show up on her sensors as well. While Shion took care of introductions, she continued on to investigate. She also didn't want to be around MOMO.

In a few seconds, everyone caught up, so she turned and began running to the hangar, ignoring the surprised look she caught on MOMO's face. Seeing that look had gotten her worried. _What if she recognizes me as a Kirschwasser? Rather, what if I lose it and lash out at her?_ She thought, with more than a small amount of worry.

They entered the hangar and saw a large red machine. Kish ran toward a guard rail, while KOS-MOS leapt at it, her arm transforming as she flew. Once she reached it, KOS-MOS brought her R-Blade down on the Auto-Tech, and would have sliced its eye off had it not swiped her off. Kish took out her pistol, and opened fire on it, and Ziggy followed KOS-MOS after it, his fist sparking with an electrical charge. He connected with the side, and managed to short out a few systems in the process.

At that time, Shion and chaos entered the battle, this time in AGWS units; the same that were in the previous hangar, and opened fire with pairs of over-sized guns. MOMO had no weapons to use against something so big, so took to crouching next to Kish, who had suddenly began to feel something from MOMO….Hilbert!

"No! Stop that!" pausing her assault on the Auto-Tech to shake her a bit; "What do you think you're doing?"

MOMO looked surprised at the hostility. "But…it helped Ziggy before when he was rescuing me."

"Yes, it probably did. But this time, it would hurt us as well. Both Shion and chaos are in AGWS units, and my accuracy is bad enough _with_ my sensors. I don't need another handicap. I can't do much as it is, and I'm trying to be useful..." Kish's voice had quieted as she spoke, despite the current situation.

By the end of her rant, Kish could barely be heard over the fighting, regardless of how close the two were sitting. "I'm not like you. I'm not complete. I couldn't even protect the ship I was assigned to. From the hundreds on the Woglinde, Shion and Allen are the only survivors. It just shows how useless I am, and I don't like that feeling. I'm sorry I can't be perfect like you, but I'll at least try to help everyone, and I don't appreciate being made useless."

Finishing that, she turned back to the Auto-Tech, leaving MOMO to her own thoughts. She was still quite confused about this new 100-Series Realian, and was happy to meet one of her 'sisters' so soon, but she now knew why Kish had been on edge around her.

'_She must see me as some kind of slap in the face. Here I am, being able to do everything she can't, and she probably feels guilty about whatever happened on that other ship. It must be hard'_ MOMO thought to herself. _'She said Shion was a survivor from that ship, so maybe I can ask her about it. She seemed nice enough before.'_

Right then, KOS-MOS fired her R-Cannon at the machine point blank, and blasted it apart. The blast also sent pieces flying towards the two Realians.

"MOMO…..MOVE!" Kish yelled before shoving MOMO aside, almost getting crushed herself.

"MOMO! Kish!" Shion yelled, rushing out the large AGWS unit, she ran over to where the Realians had landed to see if they were all right. She got there just as Ziggy had shoved a large about of junk parts out of the way, making sure his charge was un-harmed. After a while, both Realians managed to somewhat come out of their daze, and their ears stopped ringing from the explosion.

"Oohhhh…thanks, Kish" said MOMO, still slightly dazed.

"Want to thank me? You can help cook." Kish replied with a small smile; "or help clean whatever's fallen over. There was enough shaking, that's for sure." MOMO returned the smile, liking how the conversation was turning out.

"Deal."

--------------------

Back in the kitchen, everything _looked_ fine, which was of some relief to the three temporary chefs. Shion tied on her apron, and turned to the Realians. "Alright. Kish, where'd you put everything?"

"Well, the rice should be in that cabinet there, and the spices are back in their respective places." Kish said, moving towards another unit.

"Uh huh. Now, where's the curry sauce?" Shion asked, getting out the other necessary ingredients.

"Should be right he-" she began while opening another cabinet when…

"Wait! Don't--!" MOMO called, too late. Kish had opened the cabinet, and the spilt sauce fell all over her and the surrounding area.

"Ugh…sorry Shion." The Realian said, wondering how she ended up with such rotten luck today.

"Oh, my. You'd better go change and wash up to get rid of that." Shion said, getting out some tools to clean up the mess in the surrounding area.

"Yeah…uh, be back in a bit"

"No, take your time. Just meet us in the dinner/bar area to eat. MOMO and I will clean this up, and make some more sauce to go with the dinner." Shion said.

"Alright…" Kish replied, and made her way back to their room to clean up. She started with trying to wash out her 100-Series uniform. She wanted that done so it would be ready for dinner. It was one of the only two outfits she had with her, the other being her 99-Series clothes. She didn't really want to were her other uniform, mainly because she was still being cautious around MOMO. She still couldn't be sure if MOMO was fooled by her 'illusion' or not, and those clothes could be too much of a giveaway.

MOMO…that was a very unexpected turn of events. Not only that, she had already snapped at her down in the hangar, and they would most likely be sharing the same room for the remainder of the journey.

'_I also need to work on my accuracy. Despite what I told MOMO before, I'm no good with that thing at all'_ She thought. _'Ah…today just wasn't my day.'_

After finishing to wash up, she found, to her disappointment, that the 100-Series uniform was still too damp and wrinkled to wear. She sighed, cursing her own luck, and pulled out her 99-Series one. _Well, never too late to find out. Lets see just how good this illusion, and MOMO's sensors really are _she thought, while putting an illusion over her clothes to make them appear the same as her other uniform.

Making her way to the kitchen, she found it clean and empty. Letting out a small sigh, she turned to the bar and diner to find everyone just beginning to settle down for their food.

"Hi. I'm back. Sorry about the sauce…" she said, not quite meeting Shion's gaze.

Shion, who had looked up at her entrance, replied; "oh, it was no problem. We just made some more. No harm done. You manage to get all that off yourself?"

Kish nodded. _Oh, if only you knew…_ she had spent so much time trying to get that stuff out of her hair and used so much shampoo, she thought it would stay clean for a week. She couldn't mention this, however, because to them her hair looked relatively short when down, not even reaching her shoulders. In reality, it fell past the small of her back.

Looking around the room, she saw MOMO and Ziggy sitting at the end of the bar area, and decided now was as good a time as any to actually talk civilly with MOMO. Sitting down next to her, she waited until MOMO noticed her. After a bit of silence, she spoke up.

"MOMO, I'm sorry about snapping at you earlier. I'm not a combat model, and quite frankly, I'm hard-pressed to hit any target, despite its size. I was kind of strung up from all that was going on, and…not to mention…already being called 'useless' by KOS-MOS…"

It was then that MOMO cut in; "I was talking to Shion before, and I heard about what happened on the Woglinde…' Kish couldn't help but be slightly amused._ Leave it to Shion to solve all my problems._ She thought, remembering the keychain she still carried with her.

"Yes…I was made in the off chance that we ran into any Gnosis, and when they actually did, I wasn't able to help anyone. Shion almost died because my Hilbert Effect failed. If KOS-MOS hadn't come…" she trailed off.

"You know, I was really surprised to find another 100-Series here." MOMO said in a slight attempt to change the subject, but also out of curiosity. Kish almost laughed at how strange and illogical it was.

"MOMO, you do know that there are probably over a million of me on every planet and in every galaxy, yet only one of you. You'd have a better chance of running into a 100-Series, than I'd ever have running into you." After that, their talk just went into pointless drabbles about this or that, only turning tense when MOMO brought up her 'father'.

_Maybe this won't be so hard after all_

_-------------------- _

After her conversation with MOMO at dinner, Kish realized that, although MOMO knew she was different, she hadn't seen what she really looked like, nor what she was really wearing. If she had, she would have said something. MOMO seemed more the type to speak her mind, before actually thinking of the consequences.

On returning to her room (Matthews had suggested she give the newcomers a tour…but she still got Shion to help) Kish was pleased to find her 100-Series uniform was clean and dry. Although she found her 99-Series clothes more comfortable and fitting; unlike the stolen uniform, those were made for her; she felt safer in a real uniform. Really, it didn't quite matter. Her 99-Series clothes could be changed with her appearance, as it was currently being used, and not even MOMO could tell the difference.

Once she finished changing, Shion and MOMO came in. Ever since Kish saw MOMO in that corridor, she became more reclusive than normal…something Shion picked up on. She kept trying to make conversation, even blatantly asking what was wrong, but Kish ultimately just told her it was nothing, and she was fine. After a few more minutes of debating, it was ended, almost ironically, by MOMO. Soon, all three found themselves with their own thoughts in their beds, just trying to get to sleep.

(chapter 8: end)

AN: hmm...not much to say here. Have to rewrite next chapter to include Cathedral Ship, then Jr and the Durandal show up in chapter 10. I was planning to hold this back, but my mind has been changed. I'll try to fix nine before Wednesday...should be easier. I typed a 4000+ word chapter last time I promised myself I'd get something done. We'll see how that turns out...

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Xenosaga games or Xenosaga: the Animation.


	9. Chapter 9 Difficulties

**Chapter 9: Difficulties**

After her conversation with MOMO at dinner, Kish realized that, although MOMO knew she was different, she hadn't seen what she really looked like, nor what she was really wearing. If she had, she would have said something. MOMO was more the type to speak her mind, before actually thinking of the consequences.

On returning to her room (Matthews had suggested she give the newcomers a tour…but she still got Shion to help) she was pleased to find her 100-Series uniform was clean and dry. Although she found her 99-Series clothes more comfortable and fitting; unlike the stolen uniform, those were made for her; she felt safer in a real uniform. Really, it didn't quite matter. Her 99-Series clothes could be changed with her appearance, as it was currently being used, and not even MOMO could tell the difference.

Once she finished changing, Shion and MOMO came in. Ever since Kish saw MOMO in that corridor, she became more reclusive than normal…something Shion picked up on. She kept trying to make conversation, even blatantly asking what was wrong, but Kish ultimately just told her it was nothing, and she was fine. After a few more minutes of debating, it was ended, almost ironically, by MOMO. Soon, all three found themselves with their own thoughts in their beds, just trying to get to sleep.

The next day, Kish spent most of her time looking for things to do, striking up half-hearted conversations with everyone. Even with MOMO and KOS-MOS, who she never really got on with. She even went as far as to ask chaos what he did all day long.

_Something more exciting needs to happen_ she thought to herself as she was making sure, for the third time so far, that her pistol was still working. Just then, the ship shook violently and sirens started going off.

"Me and my big mouth" she muttered angrily while putting the gun away and rushing to the bridge.

She was one of the last to arrive on the bridge, and everyone was in a panic. There was plenty of yelling and confusion, but none of it was any help. Getting frustrated, Kish stood next to chaos and watched his terminal over his shoulder as he scrolled through the data to find the cause of this panic. Eventually, she spotted something and reached over to stop the data scroll.

On screen was a flashing red block, which chaos quickly looked over before calling out; "Damage to the Logic Drive Generator! We need to Gate Out now!"

His statement was met with curses from the rest of the crew. After managing the Gate Out, everyone began to relax. Well, almost everyone.

"Hey MOMO, do you sense…something?" Kish asked tentively.

"Yes" she replied. "It feels like…Gnosis!" it was at that point that Hammer let out a cry of surprise and horror.

"B-b-behind us!" he managed to get out; "Hundreds, no thousands of Gnosis!" he then put up the image from the rear camera on the monitor.

After a few seconds, Matthews came to his senses and yelled out; "Tony! Get us out of here!" and they were off. Hammer called out again; "No! They're following us!"

Meanwhile, Kish had realized that she was in fact not the last one to arrive on the bridge. "Hey, Shion? Where's KOS-MOS?" Apparently, Shion had just noticed too. "Where…?"

"Shion" KOS-MOS appeared on a side monitor. "KOS-MOS! Where are you? Were in a state of emergency here!" Shion all but demanded.

"I am presently in the AGWS hangar. What is the situation with the Gnosis?" came KOS-MOS' reply. She was taking this very calmly…but then again, when was she ever not calm?

On hearing where KOS-MOS was, Kish wondered if she might know what happened to the generator. _Maybe she saw what happened,_ Kish thought. _After all, she was the only…one…no!_

"KOS-MOS?!" Kish called out, almost fearfully. Everyone caught her tone, and turned to look at her. "What happened to the main generator?" At this point, everyone began going through the same process she had.

"I sensed the object from the Woglinde and I made necessary arrangements so that we would encounter it." KOS-MOS replied, answering as if they had any hope of regaining the Emulator, let alone survive the Gnosis Armada behind them.

"Captain, they're gaining!" called Hammer, his voice rising ever higher in fear.

"Erg…hurry up and Gate In, Tony!" Matthews called out, trying to find some way out and desperate to escape. "No can do, Captain! Remember why we Gated Out in the first place?"

"Captain, large Gate Out directly behind us!" chaos called out, still at his terminal. "What is it, more Gnosis?" Matthews asked, almost fearing the answer. "No, it looks like…the Durandal!" chaos finished, and all the crew's faces relaxed. Everyone else, however, was not as reassured.

Their monitor was now showing the Gate Out. Currently all that could be seen was a large red point, growing larger by the second. "How big is it?" Kish asked in awe. "About 4000 meters, I think" chaos replied, looking almost happy with its arrival.

As soon as it was out, the Durandal turned and prepared to confront the Gnosis. Now it was Shion's turn to be surprised. "They're not seriously thinking on taking on an entire armada with only one ship? That group took out an entire Federation fleet!" At that statement, Kish looked down. It had been her fault that the fleet was destroyed.

chaos looked like he wanted to laugh now. "If any ship can, it's the Durandal!" Just then, Kish sensed a large amount of energy being charged. _Hilbert_ she thought. And it kept charging…and charging. "That's gonna be one big Hilbert Effect. How many 100-Series are there on board that thing?" she mused aloud. Everyone turned to look at her again. _I hate it when people stare at me…_ "What?"

That was when the energy was released. Just like Kish had stated, the area of effect was quite large…larger than the Woglinde's by a couple hundred meters. And Vector was supposed to have the highest level, of technology.

"Kish, how did you know that? How did you know the size of it before it took effect?" Shion asked slowly. At this, Kish was somewhat confused.

"I sensed the energy build up in their amplifier. Nothing special…" now, it was MOMO who was staring. "you can Sense that?" Kish blinked. "You can't?" Now she was even more confused. _How can I do something MOMO can't? I'm the incomplete model, not her._

On screen, the Durandal was making quick work of the Gnosis, firing round after round of photon torpedoes into their midst.

"Now _that_ is serious firepower." This time it was Ziggy who commented. "I guess…one ship can hold off an entire armada" was all Shion could say, eye's fixed on the screen.

Now, chaos actually laughed. "I told you; if any ship can, it's the Durandal."

Now Hammer had actually checked his monitor and found more troubling news. "Captain, more Gnosis are Gating Out behind the Durandal, and they're coming after us!" chaos turned his attention back to his own terminal, and found something else that was surprising.

"The hatch is open…" he mumbled. "What? chaos, speak up!" Matthews yelled to him. So he yelled back; "The hatch is open! Someone's activated the lift." The captain was not having a very good day. "Who the hell is still down there anyway?"

It was Shion who spoke up first; "KOS-MOS!" Hammer had already begun typing, and brought up an image of the lift. Sure enough, there stood KOS-MOS. "KOS-MOS, get back here! There are too many, you can't take them on by yourself!" she called, almost frantic.

"Shion" KOS-MOS began, her voice fading; "Will feeli…" and her voice was completely cut off. "What was that? I can't hear you KOS-MOS." Shion yelled, still not having calmed down yet. "It's no good. There's not enough air left for her voice to carry." Hammer explained.

That was when the lift finished its accent. KOS-MOS moved to the back of the Elsa. Then, Kish sensed intense and unfamiliar energy wave patterns. It was painful just to be this close, and yet it kept growing. Once it reached its peak, the pain became almost unbearable, and KOS-MOS released a burst of energy that absorbed all of the Gnosis in the vicinity.

"What was…that…" Shion muttered to herself, only focused on the screen.

"Kish!" MOMO called out, running over to her sister lying on the floor, holding her head and trying to hold in screams of pain until the energy backlash subsided.

"Are you alright?" MOMO asked worriedly. "Yeah, I'll be fine…once this subsides…." Kish told her. "Ow…that really hurt."

Now, Shion took notice as well. "Huh? What happened?" she asked. "KOS-MOS" came her only reply.

"Uh, Captain? Little Master's been buzzing us for quite some time." Hammer called back, simply relieved to still be alive. "Little Master? Sure, patch him through." Matthews called over, also very relieved.

A small boy's face appeared on screen. "You guys just can't stay out of trouble, can you?" he asked after a brief pause.

"Yeah, well we had some problems with the Elsa's Logic Drive" Matthews explained. "We were forced to Gate Out, we didn't really have much choice."

"Huh. Well, lets get you guys on board. We can do the repairs on the Durandal" the boy, presumably 'Little Master', said and cut the communication as his AGWS turned and started back. The Elsa docked with the large ship, and they picked up something else as well.

(chapter 9: end)

A/N: alright, time for apoligies and confessions. I really didn't want to post this, as I was thinking of going through the Cathedral Ship, but that wasn't going well and finally, I decided that I dont quite like how the writing of these turned out. At some point in time in the future, I may end up completely rewriting this story as I really want it to be, as the new re-written chapter nine was looking to be over 9 pgs long, to give you an idea. I offer both thanks and apoligies to Albedo's Will To Power; thanks for being the only one to review and state your opinion, and apoligies for not being able to finish this for quite some time, if at all. I will, however, put up the remaining three chapters for anyone to read who wants to. My writing style's just changed so much since I began this...I can't quite finish writing it as is. for what it's worth, sorry to any readers I disappoint.


	10. Chapter 10 Durandal

**Chapter 10: Durandal**

In no time at all, the group found themselves on an elevator on its way to the bridge. The sight that greeted them was somewhat a surprise. The boy from before was there, surrounded by 100-Series Realians and two female adults.

When the lift stopped, the Elsa's crew left to mingle with everyone else. Upon seeing all the 100-Series, Kish froze. _There are so many…too many!_ she thought. She still held onto the fear that someone would find out what she was, despite the fact that not even MOMO could tell the difference. And, of course, they all came over to where she was standing by MOMO.

_Of course, MOMO's ecstatic…_she thought. They all began talking together, and then the boy, Little Master, came over to introduce himself properly.

"Hey. Welcome to the Durandal. I'm Gaignun Kukai, Jr. but you can just call me Jr. That's not my real name…but let's leave it at that for now," he said, holding out a hand to shake.

This time, it was MOMO who did the introductions; "Well, I'm MOMO, and the cyborg is Ziggy. The Vector people are Shion and Allen. Blue Hair is KOS-MOS, and…Kish? Where'd you go?" she asked confused.

_Huh? What's she talking about? I'm right here!_ She thought, somewhat angry. _Oh, wait…I'm mixed in with all the other 100-Series. They can't tell which is me._ Deciding she'd like to be known, she raised a hand and waved at her friends. "Uh, I'm here, everyone."

Everyone turned to her in surprise, then Jr. spoke up; "Ah, a 100-Series. Sorry, kinda got you mixed in with the crowd." She nodded, and while he continued to speak, she made her way over to where Shion and the others were standing, so as not to go 'missing' again. They listened to what else Jr. had to say, then they proceeded on to their rooms.

Once they were given their rooms (Kish and MOMO shared one again) Jr. wanted to show something to them, but Kish was more preoccupied with other thoughts.

"Um, can I just explore the ship?" she asked to everyone in general. She doubted that Jr. had anything too important to say, and she already knew a lot about the Kukai Foundation. After all, she'd lived there for about three years. One thing was that she'd never been on the Durandal before now, and also wanted to try and find some kind of practice shooting range to help improve her accuracy.

Everyone was somewhat surprised at her request, but they all said it was fine with them. She followed them onto the tram, but stayed when they stopped at the station labeled "Quarantine Hangar". _Hmm maybe it would have been interesting_ she thought. Oh, well. She'd ask MOMO about it later.

She checked the stops, and found one labeled "Gym". She decided to check there first, because she figured it was the best place to find what they're looking for. It was exactly as the name suggested; mostly just soldiers keeping in shape. As soon as she stepped off the tram, she began getting looks from everyone there._ They all think I'm a normal 100-Series. They don't know I came on the Elsa,_ she realized suddenly. Just as she'd hoped, they also had a training field for soldiers to practice at.

She walked up to the soldier who looked to be in charge and asked; "Umm…Can I practice here too?" The soldier looked at her like she'd grown a second head before commenting; "And since when have 100-Series been allowed to even hold a firearm, let alone use one?"

_Ok, I don't like this soldier very much_ she decided, before snapping; "Since when is it up to you to tell me what I can and can't do?"

"Since you were assigned to this ship!" he shot back. "What's your number, anyways?"

"Well, for one, my _name_ is Kish, and I'm not assigned to _any_ ship. You guys just picked me up on the Elsa" she practically shouted back. She also decided she _**really**_ didn't like this guy. They were also starting to draw a crowd.

He stared at her for a couple of seconds, before smirking. "Sure, you could use it, but we can't supply a 100-Series Realian with neither the weapon nor ammunition. Too bad" he said, thinking he'd got the last laugh from her. _Is he really this stupid?_ She thought to herself. _Well, he _did_ say I could use it_.

Brushing past him, she muttering to herself; "Like I need _those_ weapons. Completely missed the point…" She walked to an empty lane, and drew the pistol she'd taken to carrying with her, seeing all the trouble their group got into. When he saw it, the soldier began sputtering; "Wh-what? That's a Federation Officer's weapon! How the hell'd you get that?"

"If you _must_ know," she sighed, "I got it onboard the Woglinde. I was assigned there, but when we were attacked I took it to help defend the evacuees, and now I'd like some practice because my accuracy is lousy." Ok, so that's not exactly how she got it, but she wasn't about to tell anyone she stole it from the laundry.

Before he could ask anymore questions, she took aim at the target, and attempted to hit it as close to center as she could. Time passed like that for around five minutes, when she decided to continue exploring, and maybe meet up with Shion and everyone else. After giving the solder a slightly sarcastic 'good-bye', she went to the tram stop to begin her wait. Moments later, she got a strange feeling…one that she had come used to whenever MOMO was anywhere close._ But why here?_ She thought. _Isn't MOMO with Shion, Jr., and all them?_

Just then, the tram arrived. As she boarded, she found the source of her feeling; MOMO was sitting in the corner looking depressed and about to cry. The Realian glanced up, but returned her gaze to the floor. She hadn't recognized Kish and had mistaken her for another 100-Series.

_Well, this proves interesting,_ she thought. _Now…what should I do?_ The way she saw it, she had two options; 1) talk to MOMO, find out what happened, and attempt to comfort her, or 2) ignore her and pretend to be one of the many 100-Series that populate the ship. She chose option 1).

Sitting down next to her, she addressed her directly; "MOMO? What's wrong?" she said, placing a hand on her shoulder. She still felt resentment towards her, but she had enough sense to realize none of it was MOMO's fault and to just let it go.

"Huh? Oh…that you, Kish?" it took a few seconds, but MOMO got it in the end. "Yup. Now, what's wrong?" she asked again.

"Kish...was Daddy a madman?" MOMO asked. Kish was taken aback by the unexpected question and fell silent thinking how best to answer that. _What did Jr. say to her?!_ She thought angrily.

MOMO took her silence the wrong way, and began to look more dejected. "Here, let's get off this tram first," Kish said, gently pulling MOMO to her feet, and pushing the closest button labeled 'Park'.

Once the tram stopped, Kish led MOMO up the conveyer belt, all the while thinking what to say to her. As they approached a fountain and sat down in one of the surrounding park benches, she decided to tell part of the truth.

"MOMO, you have to realize, Mizrahi mostly kept to himself. Not many people really knew him. Heck, I don't think his own wife really knew what he was doing in the end," she began, and then offhandedly added; "I think the ones who knew him at that level were the Kirschwassers…"

"Huh? Kirschwassers?" at least MOMO was listening to her.

"Yeah…that's what he called the 99-Series Realians that were created to help your birth. He was most likely himself in his labs, and they were a constant presence there. You'd be hardpressed to find one, though. And even more so to get anything out of them" Kish told her. She didn't like talking about herself and older sister's like this, but it may help if she knows she's not so alone, really. That, and MOMO seemed to have calmed down somewhat.

"But…why?" MOMO asked, still confused. "What do you mean, it'd be hard to find them, and why wouldn't they talk to anyone? Are they mute?" Well, MOMO had taken to the subject.

"I think I told you once. There are many Mass Production 100-Series Realians out there, but only one of you." MOMO nodded, and Kish continued; "Well, there's a reason that you're called a '100' Series, and they are '99' Series. You were the 100th made. Some have probably died in experimentation; others may not have ever made it out of Proto Merkabah before it was lost to the Abyss. You have very little chance of talking to one anyways."

"But you also said they wouldn't talk if I found them. Why is that?" MOMO persisted. Kish had been hoping that MOMO would forget about that part. After all, this was kind of personal…

"Well, I'm sorry MOMO, but it's really just you," she confessed. "They're jealous."

This was met with confusion on MOMO's part. She asked; "But why? What did I ever do to them? We're supposed to be all the same to everyone..."

_Well, here goes nothing_ thought Kish, before she continued; "Well, you have to look at things from their perspective. After you were created, do you think that anyone really cared what became of them?" she asked. MOMO still hadn't gotten it completely, so she went on; "When you're birth started, Mizrahi had no more need for them, as they were simply tests to gather data. After he died, scientists only wanted you as the complete and functional model." She could tell what she was saying was getting to MOMO, but decided that it was something she should hear. Though, now that she was done, maybe she could actually help.

"MOMO, I'm sorry if this isn't exactly what you wanted to hear or know. Maybe if you told me what Jr. said to you to get you upset in the first place, I can help a bit better, ok?" she said, while patting her on the shoulder. Overall, she was glad MOMO was so upset that she hadn't thought to ask how a relatively new Realian like Kish would know so much about her past and her father's workings and experiments.

The next five to ten minutes were spent with talk about what she saw and what was said in the Quarantine Hangar, and how much of a jerk Jr. was for talking about people who he couldn't possibly understand. Soon after, Shion came running in looking for where MOMO had run off to. As Shion tried to talk to her and comfort her in a way Kish thought she could never understand, KOS-MOS came in and spoke up on some points.

_Great outdone by the android…again_, she thought bitterly. Sure, she'd have to work with KOS-MOS, and she was good to have around in times of emergency, but that didn't mean she'd have to like her.

Once MOMO had relatively calmed down, the three made their way to the Residential District, and Shion bid the two Realians good-night at their room and continued on to her own room. All in all, it had been a long day.

(chapter 10: end)

AN: Well, here's this chapter. I didn't quite like the idea of Albedo naming them 'Kirschwasser', so here it was Mizrahi. Also, I don't believe for a minute the few places characters can travel on the Durandal is all there is. there wouldn't be enough space for the crew, let alone kitchens/cafeteria. I just added a Gym to it.

Well, like I said before, I'm only getting these up for whoever still wants to read them. I'd say that, compaired to the beginning chapters, you can see the change in writing. The 'gap's only gotten bigger, and if/when I rewrite this, I hope it will be better too. special thanks to Robby Cartwright for reviewing, even if I don't quite see me fixing this any time soon. There's still at least one more chapter to put up and this, so enjoy.


	11. Chapter 11 Little Master

**Chapter 11: Little Master**

Waking up early and making sure her illusions on her head and face were still in place (one of the problems she discovered, her illusions sometimes wouldn't hold overnight) she began to wonder what her 'new' uniform would look like.

_It has to be similar to the standard one, but different so that my friends can still pick me out of the crowd_ she thought to herself. Eventually, she changed her 99-Series clothes to look somewhat like chaos' style of dress, yet keeping the blue-green color scheme the same as the Mass Production 100-Series. _I wonder if he'll notice..._

By the time she finished, she left to find MOMO and Shion. Realizing she was hungry, she asked Shion if she knew where the cafeteria was. Her friends stared at her a moment, before Shion commented "that's different" and all three left for breakfast.

While they were eating, everyone else came in as well, barely giving Kish a second glance. Apparently, it had been decided that they would head to the Kukai Foundation; a haven for those that didn't belong. Mainly, it was cyborgs and mutants from the Life Recycling Act. Kish had visited the free-floating space colony a few years ago, but left as soon as the Mass Production models were announced. People had begun to comment on how similar her appearance was to theirs.

Jr. had informed them it would take most of the day and next night to get there. That gave them about a full 24 hour wait onboard the Durandal.

_Well, now_ Kish thought. _What can I do with this much time?_ It also brought back memories of her 'extended breaks' onboard the Woglinde…

_Bad idea...think of something else…something else…_ Every time she thought about that ship, she remembered all the people she had met; everyone that had died because she couldn't do her job.

_Well, how about the firing range? _She thought. _I was kind of rushed yesterday, and I guess I could get more practice today._

Bidding farewell to Shion and the others, Kish took the tram to the Gym. To her disappointment, she spotted the soldier who was giving her a hard time the other day.

"Hey," he called after observing her for a while. "You're that little prick who was here yesterday." It wasn't exactly a question.

_Huh…he's smarter than I gave him credit for_ she thought, before replying out loud; "Is this the way you always act, or am I a special case?" He had already begun trying her patience.

"And why are you here?" he shot back, completely ignoring her question. She had actually wanted to know that.

"Same as yesterday" she replied in the same cold tone. "Why else would I be here, to talk to you?" Where MOMO had shown patience and tried to make a good impression on people, Kish could care less what most people thought, especially this idiot.

"Hey, there a problem here?" called a familiar voice somewhere behind her. In front, the soldier stiffened and straightened up immediately.

"Hello Jr." Kish greeted him on seeing who it was. At the same time, the soldier saluted, and partially muttered "Little Master" to him.

"Hmm…hey, you're the 100-Series that was on the Elsa with Shion and MOMO, right?" when she nodded, he continued; "Thought so. Nice outfit, by the way. No more incidents like on the bridge before, eh?"

Kish nodded again, and risked a glance at the soldier now behind her, and almost burst out laughing. He wore an expression of pure shock, and also something else. Apparently, he didn't believe her story yesterday, so this came as somewhat of a surprise.

Jr. caught her glance, and looked to see what she was looking at. Seeing his expression, he also smirked, but continued addressing Kish; "So…what are you doing here anyways?"

Controlling herself, Kish turned and took out her pistol, and told him. "Well, I wanted some practice with this, but this guy's giving me a hard time about doing that."

"Well, shooting at still targets doesn't help so much; and enemy isn't gonna sit still and let you shoot at it. You need to practice with motion, and some slight danger" he added with a mischievous glint in his eye. "I was just about to start a mock-battle in the Encephalon, why don't you join us?"

His forwardness caught her off guard, and she stumbled over her answer somewhat; "Oh…oh, no. I'm not any good. It takes me forever to get anywhere near center of these targets" she said motioning at the range behind her.

"Yeah, that's why you should join us; better practice! Come' on, it'll be fun!" he persisted, then began dragging her off before she had time to object any further to a group of machines in the back talking almost nonstop about strategies and giving her tips to increase her accuracy. She got the impression that he was really into guns.

After set-up was complete, Kish found herself in the center of a virtual city, surrounded by buildings, and other soldiers in different colors. Looking at herself, she found she had been given a red outfit in the transfer sequence. Jr. took charge, and began leading her group to one of the 'bases' in the city, and the game began.

Three hours later, the group emerged from the training battle. All in all, Kish felt no better. If anything, she was more hesitant to participate in real battle. She mainly supported everyone else, and kept track of enemy positions. Jr. was the one doing all the killings.

"Woohoo! That was awesome!" needless to say, Jr. was very hyped after their win. Although, she doubted that whatever team Jr. was on ever lost. His small size, combined with his speed, made him quite hard to hit.

"Yes, well, I'm not sure if I'm any better now than before…" Kish told him, slightly trailing in the end of her statement.

"Well, yeah. But all you need's some more practice, and you'll do fine." He assured her, before becoming slightly nervous.

_What's he acting all jittery about all of a sudden?_ She wondered, but didn't comment. She figured if he was going to tell her, he would.

Getting to the tram stop, he finally spoke up.

"Ah, Kish? Do you, well, do you know where MOMO is? I have something I need to give her, and…" he trailed off.

Slightly confused at the change of pace, she none the less closed her eyes and tried to 'feel' where MOMO was. She'd gotten quite good at pinpointing her based off the feeling she got whenever she was near her 'sister'.

"Yup. This way" she said, before grabbing his arm and pulling him into the tram. Then turning and pressing the button for "Residential", she sat and waited. She thought it quite odd that Jr. needed to find her sister for something, but Jr. had seemed to be acting weird ever since he caught sight of MOMO. Then again, this could be how he normally acts.

Once they reached their stop, she got out and went to the main corridor. "She's down there, on the left. By some rest area, or something. I don't really know that area yet."

With a smile and a wave, he ran off with a brief shout of thanks over his shoulder. Shaking her head at his antics, she decided to take a nap. While her body hadn't physically been doing anything today, her mind believed she was running, ducking, and shooting for the past three hours.

Making her way to her bed, she resolved to bother MOMO until she was told what had happened, or rather what was happening, as Jr. probably arrived at where MOMO was by now. With that in mind, she was asleep in minutes.

It was later in the day that Kish was woken up by none other than MOMO. After being shaken awake and a few moments of disorientation, she noticed MOMO was running around and washing up.

"What's the occasion?" Kish asked sleepily after a few more seconds of watching.

"Well, we're going to have dinner together in a few minutes and-" MOMO began, but was cut off.

"Wait, dinner? What happened to lunch? And what do you mean by 'we' and 'together'? Did someone plan this?" Kish asked, and MOMO gave her an odd look.

"You slept through lunch, and I told you about this maybe two hours ago."

"Well, was I awake?" Kish asked slightly frustrated.

"Oh, you were. You also told me to do quite a few things for simply waking you up to tell you"

"Oh…" Kish looked down for a bit. She didn't remember any of that. "So, umm…what's going on?"

"I told you before you interrupted me."

_'Alright, now she's doing this on purpose'_ Kish thought to herself before trying to remember what MOMO had said when she woke up.

"…Dinner?" she asked tentatively. She really couldn't remember, but she was hungry. Besides, it sounded like something MOMO would want to get ready for. _…wait a minute._

"What are you doing? I thought it was only our little group of six, eight if you count the rest of the Elsa's crew. Why are you spending so much effort in this?" she asked incredulous.

"Uh, well…" MOMO began, but trailed off. Suddenly, Kish got an idea.

"This have anything to do with a certain redheaded gunslinger?" After that, MOMO's face began to redden. "Ah, that's a yes, then. What'd he want to give you, anyway" she asked, remembering an earlier conversation. By now, MOMO's face was quite flushed.

"H-how'd you even know about that?"

"He asked me if I knew where you were. Said he wanted to give you something."

"He wanted to give me this; a good luck charm, he called it." Here she held up her arm, on which was a bracelet with a bullet attached.

"Huh, where'd he get something like this?" Kish wondered aloud. It almost looked like…

"Well, originally it was a simple bullet and a chain, but Jr. did something to it and they kinda fused together…" MOMO trailed off at the end, somewhat unsure.

"Really? Huh…I wonder…" Kish mumbled to herself. _'Could he be a URTV?'_ she wondered.

The URTV's were 'designer children', created by one Dimitri Yuriev for the Federation as the anti-existence to U-DO. Kish hadn't heard much about it, but had once visited the Yuriev Institute before the Descent Operation on Miltia. After catching sight of Juli Mizrahi, she decided not to stay. As the mother of the girl her design was based off of, she would be the first to recognize the run-away Kirschwasser, illusion or not.

"So, he's the reason you're spending all this time getting ready?" Kish confirmed with a slightly teasing tone in her voice.

"Oh, go back to sleep Kish" MOMO called from the closet she had disappeared into searching for…something.

"You're the one who woke me up in the first place!" Kish yelled back before taking her up on the offer and flopped back onto her bed.

All too soon, MOMO was once again shaking her awake.

"Come on, you only have five minutes now!"

Kish groaned, but dutifully rolled out of bed, only to fall flat on the floor. Three minutes and one illusion later and they were off. As Kish had predicted, MOMO was the only one who looked like they went out of their way for this.

Halfway through the meal, Jr. informed everyone that they'd be docking at the Kukai Foundation, and then Shion decided to plan a small shopping trip to visit the sights. When MOMO began asking about different tourist sights, chaos gave her a brochure from the Elsa.

All in all, not much happened until the next day when everyone gathered in the Park area to view the docking. Jr. had said these windows offer the best view. Soon enough, the Kukai Foundation came into view, and kept getting larger and larger.

'_Wow…it's been a while'_ Kish thought to herself. _'I haven't been here in about three years. I wonder if they finished that private beach I heard about. And…Maria…'_

Kish had spent a lot of time going from place to place after escaping from Proto Merkabah. Some of the places were planets, some free floating space colonies. One of the places she'd stayed the longest was on the Kukai Foundation. During her traveling was when she discovered her ability to copy the outer form of other Realians. She used this wherever she went, but inevitably had to leave whenever someone commented on how much she looked like the 100 Series Realians, especially when their development became widely known.

Still getting closer, the Foundation's true size became apparent. It seemed that the Durandal was built in proportion to the Foundation, which was saying something for a 4000 meter ship. Soon the others seemed to realize this too.

"We're going to dock like this?" Shion exclaimed looking somewhat uneasy.

"Oh, I can't wait to see the Durandal turn into a giant skyscraper!" This time it was MOMO who was yelling.

"What? Skyscraper?" Shion tried to confirm, more frazzled than normal.

"She means what she said," Kish answered, seeing both Jr. and MOMO a bit preoccupied. "See that blue hole we're coming up to? That's the center of the lake. When we dock, we come up through there point first and keep going. The Durandal rises above the water and looks for the entire colony a giant skyscraper. The ship's actually a pretty famous tourist attraction on the Foundation, and it's quite the sight to see when docking or leaving."

Not long after Kish's explanation, the Durandal reached their destination and began to dock. Because of their 'sideways' orientation, it was quite the odd sight to see all the buildings rushing across in front of them. For a minute, Kish had a feeling of vertigo. It looked like she was standing perpendicular on a wall and she briefly feared falling off.

Once before, during her stay at the Foundation, she had seen the Durandal both docking and leaving and was quite awed by the sight. Never before had she ever been on the Durandal, and found that simply being on board was an experience in and of itself.

"Wow! That was amazing! And look at the view!" MOMO gushed while pressed up against the glass window in front of them. Just then, Kish heard a door open behind them and then a voice.

"If you really want to see a sight, you should see it around New Years, when everything is decorated in lights."

Turning around, the group faced a man who had just walked in. Coming towards them, he spoke again.

"My name is Gaignun Kukai. Welcome to the Kukai Foundation."

(chapter 11; end)

AN: Again, special thanks to Robby Cartwright for reviewing and a general thanks to everyone else who reads this but doesn't review. I know you're out there; eleven people read the last chapter, yet only one reviewed. Well, sad news is there's only one more chapter of this I have to put up, then I'll be going under the radar, so to say, until I feel up to changing/rewriting this. Now, I forgot this for a bit, so lets finish this up:

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Xenosaga games or Xenosaga: the Animation.


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